Adult Disability Payment: Independent Review - interim report

Executive Summary

The Review is seen by many stakeholders as an opportunity to do more than ‘tinker around the edges’ resulting in potential recommendations for minor changes to wording and/or processes. There was a desire exhibited in many stakeholder meetings that the Review should result in strong recommendations about how to shift the system from the ‘safe and secure transition’ stage to one that is truly rights-based in practice as well as on paper, and one that reflects the social and human rights model of disability as opposed to a medical and beneficiary/charitable model.

In the interim report I have captured the recurring themes from stage one of the Review. This has been done following extensive internal and external stakeholder engagement, a consultation and call for evidence, consultation events and a comprehensive literature review.

Whilst there are many evident, positive aspects to the current system, the Review has uncovered recurring themes that may be addressed by the implementation of a revised system and we will explore what this might mean in practice, in the second stage of the Review.

Whilst it is clear that the Scottish Government has introduced many improvements during the transition from Personal Independence Payment and shown a willingness to embrace feedback, there are many aspects that remain unchanged, potentially unfair and problematic for some clients.

There are several priorities that I feel should be capable of early action, and these are captured in full later in the report. The actions include improving communication between Social Security Scotland and clients, and third party representatives; making some small adjustments to the application form; improving the consultation process; improving decision making timescales and ensuring more consistency in decision making; improving the way supporting information is provided; promoting further take up of the benefit and ensuring people know about the support available to assist them in making an application; ensuring all information is as accessible as it can be and suggestions for further research to be conducted.

I have not addressed the eligibility criteria or the merits or otherwise of a points-based system, as further work is required on these areas during phase two of the Review.

At the end of July 2025 a full report will be produced with recommendations that I hope the Scottish Government will welcome.

With the support of the Advisory Group and continued stakeholder engagement, I am committed to ensuring that our review process is thorough, inclusive, and reflective of the needs and experiences of those it aims to serve. The feedback gathered from the consultation and call for evidence will be invaluable as we continue to evaluate and ultimately enhance the Adult Disability Payment system in Scotland.